Darlene Blackburn

Darlene Blackburn is a producer, teacher, choreographer, lecture, and demonstrator of African and Caribbean dance with a strong foundation in modern, ballet, jazz, and tap. She earned a BA in physical education and minor in dance (with honors) in 1984 from Northeastern Illinois University, and an MA in the same studies from Chicago State University in 1987. Blackburn, founder of the Darlene Blackburn Dance Troupe, started dancing at an early age in Chicago. Her international dance studies and experiences in Ghana and Nigeria, including three years as the Artist-in-Residence at the University of Calabar in Nigeria, helped to shape her work as a dance instructor and choreographer at Chicago institutions such as the Calumet Career Preparatory Academy, the Chicago Boys and Girls Club and the Goodman Theatre.